1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a paper supplying cassette for an image forming apparatus, in particular to an improvement of the paper supplying cassette wherein a paper supplying or supporting plate with papers or paper sheets carried thereon is moved to a paper supplying position when the papers are to be supplied.
Recently, in a front loading type image forming apparatus, it has been proposed in order to improve a set condition of papers that a cassette plate with the papers carried thereon be moved to an upper paper supplying position by means of a motor when the papers are to be supplied. In such arrangement, a gear mounted on a side of a holding plate for moving the cassette plate is engaged with a gear mounted on an output shaft of the motor. A stopper prevents a paper supplying cassette with the cassette plate housed therein from being removed until movement of the cassette plate to a lower paper withdrawal position thereof is finished. This is for the purpose of prevention of damage to a gear mechanism that would occur if the cassette were to be removed when the motor still is operating to lower the cassette plate. In such arrangement, both upward and downward movement of the cassette plate usually is carried out by forward rotation and by reverse rotation of the motor. Accordingly, when said paper supplying cassette is to be removed, such withdrawal cannot occur during a time from starting of the motor by operation of a switch for a withdrawal operation until arrival of the cassette plate at the lower paper withdrawal position (about 3 seconds). Thus, operator time is wasted and the operator may become impatient. In addition, there is the possibility that the operator may attempt to forcibly withdraw the paper supplying cassette before the necessary watch-and-wait time is over, thereby breaking driving systems such as gear mechanism and the motor.